Dear Diversity Council List members

First of all let me introduce myself.  I am Director of Learning Centres at
the University of Wolverhampton responsible for library, information, open
access IT and central learning support for a population of 23k students
based on 5 campuses and 4 hospitals in the West Midlands.    I joined your
email discussion list some weeks ago having read about the council and its
work over the past year or so in the LAR.

Our university is concerned to improve the ethnic profile of its staff to
match more closely the diversity of our student population across 10
academic schools.  Ethnic minority entrants to these schools range from
over 50% in the case of Legal Studies to 11% in the case of Sports,
Performing Arts & Leisure.  In 5 of the schools 30% or more entrants come
from ethnic minority backgrounds.

To help progress us on the route to reflecting our student population
better in our staffing, the university has set up a Desired Staffing
Profile initiative which aims to assist service areas and schools in
addressing the diversity agenda .   The ethnic profile of Learning Centre
staff has been significantly lower than other service areas and this has
led me to set up a project within the service to examine the issues and
identify ways of addressing them .   We recently commissioned a study to
support the project from a company called People Matters and they reported
toward the end of last year.

One if the significant issues which People Matters report confirmed for us
was that the LIS profession does not appeal strongly to candidates from
ethnic minority backgrounds in the UK and that this is particularly marked
in the case of jobs outside the public library sector, where some success
is being achieved.  While People Matters identified areas for action within
our service and within the university it is clear that we cannot change the
position on our own.  We conclude this not in a defeatist way but in the
context that the most recent figures I have seen of LA members from ethnic
minority backgrounds is 2.2%.

I am interested in ideas from the Diversity Council on how colleagues from
different parts of the profession can pull together to place this issue
more at the forefront of those who can influence progress.  I have talked
to Bob McKee about the issues and know that he is very supportive.  I have
also discussed the agenda with Professor Judith Elkin, Dean of Faculty of
Computing, Information and English at our neighbour institution,the
University of Central England in Birmingham, which offers courses in
Information & Library Management and Studies.  I am currently a member of
the Executive Board of SCONUL, the Society of College, National and
University Libraries and through that body would be happy to seek to
promote ideas for change in the HE LIS sector.

I look forward to hearing ideas and comment from members of the list.

regards

Mary
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        Mary Heaney,
        Director of Learning Centres
        University of Wolverhampton
        ML Block, 54 Stafford St
        Wolverhampton
        WV1 1NJ, UK

        Tel: +44 (0)1902 322302 (direct) or +44 (0) 1902 32100 (PABX)
        Fax: +44 (0)1902 322668
        Learning Centres homepage: http://www.wlv.ac.uk/lib/
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